Troy Matthew Carnes is a native Mississippian and a graduate of Ole Miss. A career educator with twenty years experience as a teacher and coach, he teaches English, Spanish and Journalism, and coaches basketball. His teams have won three high school girl's state championships in the Mississippi Private School Association. During the 1980's he served as a "Green Beret" in the U.S. Army Special Forces, and later worked as a freelance journalist. He currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee with his wife Courtney and their sons Colt and Caleb. Carnes is also the author of Rasputin's Legacy, a novel.